Chapter 15: An Unexpected Encounter and a Maid’s Wild Imagination

Although there were some minor incidents, the rest of the journey was uneventful.

Discerning bandits, seeing the menacing aura of the escort knights in the hot weather, dared not attack.

Undiscerning bandits had their heads lopped off by the knights’ blades.

At first, I had been extremely tense during bandit attacks, but these days I trusted the knights and paid no mind to the assaults.

“Koo…”

This darn maid was peacefully taking a nap.

“You scoundrels! Do you know whose procession you are blocking?”

As we approached the Academy, a group of bandits inevitably appeared.

Recalling the harsh experience in the cave, I didn’t let my guard down like Kani, but I also wasn’t overly worried and listened to the sounds outside.

“Ha, who do you think you are?”

His voice was so thick with phlegm, I could picture his face without even seeing it.

‘Just some common thugs.’

Since this world was governed by clichés, I thought a crisis might occur at some point, but I didn’t think we would lose to such low-level bandits.

“Hey, get over there.”

I pushed away Kani, who had rolled over in her sleep and encroached upon my space.

At that moment.

Kwaang!

An explosion, a sound that shouldn’t have been heard in a skirmish with mere thugs.

“Oh, f*ck.”

A curse I had been consciously suppressing slipped out due to the loud noise.

“Hiek.”

Kani, drooling from the corner of her mouth, woke up with a start.

“Shh.”

I covered Kani’s mouth and pressed my ear to the door.

Chaeng chaeng!

Peo peo peong!

The clash of weapons and the sound of something exploding stimulated my ears.

I gulped.

“Kani, stay right here and don’t move.”

“Yes? What about you, Young Master?”

“I’m a mage, after all, so I have to help.”

There was no way Count Edgar’s knights would be pushed back by a mere band of thieves.

The reason such a group of bandits could fight on par with the knights was likely because of the mage creating these explosions.

A mage fighting a mage is a basic tenet of engagement.

Although I was still an inexperienced novice mage, if I could at least provide a minimal balance, the knights would be able to overwhelm the bandits.

Deolkeok.

As I opened the door and stepped out, all eyes turned to me.

“Huk, Young Master, please return to the carriage!”

“I’m a mage too, you know!”

Looking around the battlefield, fortunately, none of the knights were down, and only the corpses of a few bandits lay scattered on the ground.

On the bandits’ side, there was one person with their face hidden under a deeply pulled-down robe; it seemed that person was the opposing mage.

“Magic Missile.”

“Ike.”

The opposing mage didn’t even give me a chance to survey the battlefield and immediately fired a Magic Missile.

I had no talent for swordsmanship, but thanks to diligent training, I narrowly dodged the magic.

It was my first life-or-death magical duel, and adrenaline surged through me.

Feeling lighter than usual, I cast a spell.

“Fireball.”

Fireball, the most basic of basic spells for mages.

As a simple incantation, the power of Fireball depends purely on the quantity and quality of mana, rather than theory or sense.

It was the optimal magic for me, who, despite lacking experience and sense as a mage, boasted an overwhelming amount of mana.

Hwarreuk.

A Fireball of a size unbelievable for a 1st-circle magic.

“Hwaaak!”

The bandits, who had only been receiving magical support, panicked and scattered at the attack, even though the magic wasn’t aimed directly at them.

“Hey, why are you running away?”

The mage, who had easily escaped the Fireball’s range with stealth magic, stammered in apparent confusion.

Seeing the bandits fleeing, ignoring the mage’s words, it seemed no trust had been established between them.

Instead of chasing the bandits, the knights formed a pincer formation and surrounded the mage.

I, too, reactivated my mana circuit and prepared to cast the next spell.

“Ha, f*cking b*stards.”

The mage, who wore a robe to conceal their identity, ended up revealing their voice.

Surprisingly, the voice of the mage under the deeply pulled-down robe was that of a delicate woman.

This world is the world of a male-oriented novel.

In a male-oriented novel, if the villain is male, it means they are an insignificant character, and if female, it means they are an important character.

Glancing under the robe, the mage seemed to be a great beauty. A beautiful female villain?

This pretty much confirmed her as one of the most important characters in the world.

‘The princess of a fallen kingdom? The leader of a secret society? The young lady of a noble family dreaming of treason?’

Various candidates regarding the woman’s identity came to mind.

“Attack!”

Befitting the elite knights of a Count’s family, the timing of each knight’s sword swing was perfectly synchronized.

It was a combined attack that seemed impossible to dodge even for the Knight Commander.

“Got you!”

‘Ah…’

The moment the blade was about to graze the mage’s neck.

Some foolish knight planted a flag, and the mage made an seemingly impossible move, narrowly evading the tip of the sword.

‘Whoever it is, they’re dead.’

“Wind Cutter!”

As soon as the knights’ combined attack failed, I drew upon the mana I had pre-warmed and unleashed the spell.

A blade of wind rushed forward, letting out a sharp, tearing sound.

The mage, who had momentarily faltered, revealed her wrist.

“Shield.”

The golden bracelet on the mage’s wrist emitted light, and immediately, a 3rd-circle Shield magic spread around her.

Kang!

My magic, though powerful for a 1st-circle spell, had difficulty piercing a 3rd-circle magic.

The magic dissipated, leaving only a small crack in the shield.

“Charge!”

Like excellent knights, they immediately launched an attack as soon as my magic was dispelled.

“Hmph, I suppose I must retreat for now.”

The mage uttered a curse, implying they would meet again someday.

Whipping her robe, she pulled out a magic scroll from her bosom.

“That’s a Teleportation Scroll!”

The Vice-Commander, recognizing the item in the mage’s hand, exclaimed in surprise.

A Teleportation Scroll, which allows instantaneous travel to a designated coordinate simply by tearing it.

Since it was effectively like having an extra life, demand from the imperial family and high-ranking nobles was high, making a single scroll as expensive as a castle.

It was unlikely a high-ranking noble would give a Teleportation Scroll to a mere 1st-circle mage, so it was highly probable that the mage’s family had provided it.

Why a young lady from such a distinguished family, one that would give her a Teleportation Scroll, was engaged in banditry, I didn’t know.

Paat.

Before the knights’ blades could reach, the magic scroll was torn, and the mage disappeared with a bright flash of light.

“Damn it.”

The knights lamented letting the mage escape right before their eyes.

I patted the shoulder of a knight who was fuming with anger.

“It’s okay if we let her go. The most important thing is our safety, right?”

“Understood…”

After placating the knight well, the Vice-Commander, who was in charge of the escort knights, approached with a serious face.

“Young Master, seeing as she used a Teleportation Scroll, the mage seems to be the child of a high-ranking noble family.”

“I think so too.”

“She might retaliate later, so I intend to hasten our pace. Is that alright?”

“Yes, it’s for safety.”

Even though we were near the capital, the roads in this other world were generally not well-paved.

Therefore, if we were to speed up in the carriage, we would suffer considerably from motion sickness.

That’s why our party had been slowing down and taking frequent rests to minimize motion sickness.

However, since we didn’t know what kind of pursuit might follow, it seemed we could no longer afford such luxury.

“Understood. Then I will issue the order to depart immediately.”

“I’ll be counting on you.”

“Yes!”

The Vice-Commander quickened his steps and slapped the buttocks of the resting knights.

“Hey, you scoundrels, prepare to depart!”

“What? The battle just ended, though?”

“What if that mage brings back a horde of bandits? We need to get as far away as possible.”

“Well… understood…”

The Vice-Commander skillfully urged the knights on.

I left the subsequent matters to the Vice-Commander and re-boarded the carriage.

“Hic, bandits are scary…”

This pathetic maid, even though her master had returned from a life-threatening fight, couldn’t even manage a welcome and was instead cowering under a blanket, trembling.

It seemed she didn’t even realize the engagement was over.

I approached to inform her that the bandits had been defeated.

“Huhuheuk… If I’m captured by bandits, being a virgin, I’ll be sold at a high price to some disgusting pig noble…”

The moment I was about to touch her back to let her know she was safe, Kani suddenly started writing a novel.

“…”

Curious to see how far this maid would fall, I decided not to intervene and just watched.

“Poor Kani, sold to a pig noble after losing all hope. The pig noble, thinking of making the beautiful Kani his wife, would be drooling disgustingly.”

‘Look at the level of her delusion.’

“Kani, her eyes dead, having lost all dreams and hope. Trapped behind iron bars, being dragged away powerlessly, when the Young Master, whom she thought was dead, blocks her path.”

What, why am I appearing?

“The Young Master would have a large wound over his left eye from the fierce battle with the bandits and would be wearing an eyepatch.”

Kani, turning a healthy person into a one-eyed man in an instant.

“The Young Master, gripping his bastard sword tightly, bravely charges!”

Oh boy, she’s excited.

And I’m a mage, you wench.

“The Young Master engages in a fierce battle with the pig noble’s knight. After a desperate struggle, he defeats the knight and points his sword at the pig noble.”

Looking at it now, Kani’s true calling seems to be a writer, not a maid.

“Release my woman, Count!”

Kani began to act, seemingly engrossed in her imagination.

“Hmph, I cannot hand over this woman!”

She also showcased a commendable pig noble impersonation.

“Then die!”

I kicked Kani’s butt.

“You die instead.”

“Heeeeeeek? Young Master?”

“Yes, it’s the Young Master who lost his left eye after a fierce battle with the bandits.”

“Hahaha…”

Cold sweat trickled down Kani’s forehead, and her eyes spun around.

It seemed it was time to discipline this troublesome maid once and for all.